~~~ Editorial Comments:  So I don't confuse anybody, I want to state that Alonzo retiring isn't something to celebrate.  The reason I put him on here was to look back and recognize the career of one of the NBA's greats.

November 27th, 2003.....Alonzo Mourning: Retirement

As no doubt any NBA fan has already learned, Alonzo Mourning, only 12 games into the young season, has been forced to retire due to recent problems with his kidneys.  The League will be losing one of its fiercest, hardest-working, and most gentlemanly players it has ever had.  Zo was the 2nd pick in the '92 Draft behind Shaquille O'Neal, and quickly ignited debates over who was the better center of the two.  Teaming with a then-healthy Larry Johnson, fiesty Muggsy Bogues, and sharpshooters Hersey Hawkins and Del Curry, Alonzo helped the team into the playoffs only to lose to MJ and the Bulls.  In 1996, Zo took his game to Miami to play with Dan Majerle, Tim Hardaway, PJ Brown, and Kurt Thomas.  Coached under Pat Riley, Zo was the centerpiece of one of the best Eastern teams of the 1990's.  However, in 2000, Mourning was diagnosed with a rare kidney disease that caused him to miss all but 13 games.  Next year, Zo returned with new vigor, and wound up starting for the All-Star team.  Unfortunately, his condition worsened the following year and he missed the entire season.  This year, after being cleared to play, Alonzo signed a $22 million, 4 year deal with the New Jersey Nets.  However, his disease had taken a turn for the worse, and it is now known that Zo requires a kidney transplant.  As Alonzo takes these next few steps forward into his life, a look back to the past will surely solidify Alonzo Mourning's place in NBA history.